An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

C++ Overview

An Overview of C++
Douglas C. Schmidt
Professor [email protected] www.dre.vanderbilt.edu/schmidt/ Department of EECS Vanderbilt University (615) 343-8197

C++ was designed at AT&T Bell Labs by Bjarne Stroustrup in the early 80s The original cfront translated C++ into C for portability However, this was dicult to debug and potentially inecient Many native host machine compilers now exist e.g., Borland, DEC, GNU, HP, IBM, Microsoft, Sun, Symantec, etc. C++ is a mostly upwardly compatible extension of C that provides: 1. 2. 3. 4. Stronger typechecking Support for data abstraction Support for object-oriented programming Support for generic programming

www.cs.wustl.edu/schmidt/PDF/C++-overview.pdf June 20, 2010

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

C++ Design Goals

As with C, run-time eciency is important Unlike other languages (e.g., Ada) complicated run-time libraries have not traditionally been required for C++ Note, that there is no language-specic support for concurrency, persistence, or distribution in C++ Compatibility with C libraries & traditional development tools is emphasized, e.g., Object code reuse The storage layout of structures is compatible with C e.g., support for X-windows, standard ANSI C library, & UNIX/WIN32 system calls via extern block C++ works with the make recompilation utility
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C++ Design Goals (contd)

As close to C as possible, but no closer i.e., C++ is not a proper superset of C backwards compatibility is not entirely maintained Typically not a problem in practice... Note, certain C++ design goals conict with modern techniques for: 1. Compiler optimization e.g., pointers to arbitrary memory locations complicate register allocation & garbage collection 2. Software engineering e.g., separate compilation complicates inlining due to diculty of interprocedural analysis Dynamic memory management is error-prone
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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Major C++ Enhancements

1. C++ supports object-oriented programming features e.g., abstract classes, inheritance, & virtual methods 2. C++ supports data abstraction & encapsulation e.g., the class mechanism & name spaces 3. C++ supports generic programming e.g., parameterized types 4. C++ supports sophisticated error handling e.g., exception handling 5. C++ supports identifying an objects type at runtime e.g., Run-Time Type Identication (RTTI)
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Important Minor Enhancements

C++ enforces type checking via function prototypes Provides type-safe linkage Provides inline function expansion Declare constants that can be used to dene static array bounds with the const type qualier Built-in dynamic memory management via new & delete operators Namespace control

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Useful Minor Enhancements

The name of a struct, class, enum, or union is a type name References allow call-by-reference parameter modes New type-secure extensible iostreams I/O mechanism Function call-style cast notation Several dierent commenting styles New mutable type qualier New bool boolean type

Questionable Enhancements
Default values for function parameters Operator & function overloading Variable declarations may occur anywhere statements may appear within a block Allows user-dened conversion operators Static data initializers may be arbitrary expressions

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Language Features Not Part of C++

1. Concurrency Concurrent C by Gehani Actor++ model by Lavender & Kafura 2. Persistence Object Store, Versant, Objectivity Exodus system & E programming language 3. Garbage Collection USENIX C++ 1994 paper by Ellis & Detlefs GNU g++ 4. Distribution CORBA, RMI, COM+, SOAP, etc.
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Strategies for Learning C++

Focus on concepts & programming techniques Dont get lost in language features Learn C++ to become a better programmer More eective at designing & implementing Design Patterns C++ supports many dierent programming styles Learn C++ gradually Dont have to know every detail of C++ to write a good C++ program

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Stack Example
The following slides examine several alterative methods of implementing a Stack Begin with C & evolve up to various C++ implementations First, consider the bare-bones implementation:
typedef int T; #define MAX_STACK 100 /* const int MAX_STACK = 100; */ T stack[MAX_STACK]; int top = 0; T item = 10; stack[top++] = item; // push ... item = stack[--top]; // pop

Data Hiding Implementation in C

Dene the interface to a Stack of integers in C in Stack.h:
/* Type of Stack element. */ typedef int T; /* Stack interface. */ int create (int size); int destroy (void); void push (T new_item); void pop (T *old_top); void top (T *cur_top); int is_empty (void); int is_full (void);

Obviously not very abstract...

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Data Hiding Implementation in C (contd)

/* File stack.c */
#include "stack.h" static int top_, size_; /* Hidden within this file. */ static T *stack_; int create (int size) { top_ = 0; size_ = size; stack_ = malloc (size * sizeof (T)); return stack_ == 0 ? -1 : 0; } void destroy (void) { free ((void *) stack_); } void push (T item) { stack_[top_++] = item;} void pop (T *item) { *item = stack_[--top_]; } void top (T *item) { *item = stack_[top_ - 1]; } int is_empty (void) { return top_ == 0; } int is_full (void) { return top_ == size_; }

Data Hiding Implementation in C (contd)

Use case
#include "stack.h" void foo (void) { T i; push (10); /* Oops, forgot to call create! */ push (20); pop (&i); destroy (); }

Main problems: 1. 2. 3. 4.
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The programmer must call create() rst & destroy() last! There is only one stack & only one type of stack Name space pollution... Non-reentrant
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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Data Abstraction Implementation in C

An ADT Stack interface in C:
typedef int T; typedef struct { size_t top_, size_; T *stack_; } Stack; int Stack_create (Stack *s, size_t size); void Stack_destroy (Stack *s); void Stack_push (Stack *s, T item); void Stack_pop (Stack *, T *item); /* Must call before poping */ int Stack_is_empty (Stack *); /* Must call before pushing */ int Stack_is_full (Stack *); /* ... */

An ADT Stack implementation in C:

Data Abstraction Implementation in C (contd)

#include "stack.h" int Stack_create (Stack *s, size_t size) { s->top_ = 0; s->size_ = size; s->stack_ = malloc (size * sizeof (T)); return s->stack_ == 0 ? -1 : 0; } void Stack_destroy (Stack *s) { free ((void *) s->stack_); s->top_ = 0; s->size_ = 0; s->stack_ = 0; } void Stack_push (Stack *s, T item) { s->stack_[s->top_++] = item; } void Stack_pop (Stack *s, T *item) { *item = s->stack_[--s->top_]; } int Stack_is_empty (Stack *s) { return s->top_ == 0; }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Data Abstraction Implementation in C (contd)

Use case
void foo (void) { Stack s1, s2, s3; /* Multiple stacks! */ T item; Stack_pop (&s2, &item); /* Popd empty stack */ /* Forgot to call Stack_create! */ Stack_push (&s3, 10); s2 = s3; /* Disaster due to aliasing!!! */ /* Destroy uninitialized stacks! */ Stack_destroy (&s1); Stack_destroy (&s2); }

Main problems with Data Abstraction in C

1. No guaranteed initialization, termination, or assignment 2. Still only one type of stack supported 3. Too much overhead due to function calls 4. No generalized error handling... 5. The C compiler does not enforce information hiding e.g.,
s1.top_ = s2.stack_[0]; /* Violate abstraction */ s2.size_ = s3.top_; /* Violate abstraction */

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

We can get encapsulation and more than one stack:

typedef int T; class Stack { public: Stack (size_t size); Stack (const Stack &s); void operator= (const Stack &); ~Stack (void); void push (const T &item); void pop (T &item); bool is_empty (void) const; bool is_full (void) const; private: size_t top_, size_; T *stack_; };

Data Abstraction Implementation in C++

Manager operations

Data Abstraction Implementation in C++ (contd)

Stack::Stack (size_t s): top_ (0), size_ (s), stack_ (new T[s]) {} Stack::Stack (const Stack &s) : top_ (s.top_), size_ (s.size_), stack_ (new T[s.size_]) { for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) stack_[i] = s.stack_[i]; } void Stack::operator = (const Stack &s) { if (this == &s) return; T *temp_stack = new T[s.size_]; delete [] stack_; stack_ = 0; for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) temp_stack[i] = s.stack_[i]; stack_ = temp_stack; top_ = s.top_; size_ = s.size_; } Stack::~Stack (void) { delete [] stack_; }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Data Abstraction Implementation in C++ (contd)

Accessor & worker operations
bool Stack::is_empty (void) const { return top_ == 0; } bool Stack::is_full (void) const { return top_ == size_; } void Stack::push (const T &item) { stack_[top_++] = item; } void Stack::pop (T &item) { item = stack_[--top_]; }

Data Abstraction Implementation in C++ (contd)

Use case
#include "Stack.h" void foo (void) { Stack s1 (1), s2 (100); T item; if (!s1.is_full ()) s1.push (473); if (!s2.is_full ()) s2.push (2112); if (!s2.is_empty ()) s2.pop (item); // Access violation caught at compile-time! s2.top_ = 10; // Termination is handled automatically. }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Benets of C++ Data Abstraction Implemenation

1. Data hiding & data abstraction, e.g.,
Stack s1 (200); s1.top_ = 10 // Error flagged by compiler!

Drawbacks with C++ Data Abstraction Implementation

1. Error handling is obtrusive Use exception handling to solve this (but be careful)! 2. The example is limited to a single type of stack element (int in this case) We can use C++ parameterized types to remove this limitation 3. Function call overhead We can use C++ inline functions to remove this overhead

2. The ability to declare multiple stack objects

Stack s1 (10), s2 (20), s3 (30);

3. Automatic initialization & termination

{ Stack s1 (1000); // constructor called automatically. // ... // Destructor called automatically }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

C++ exceptions separate error handling from normal processing

typedef int T; class Stack { public: class Underflow { /* ... */ }; class Overflow { /* ... */ }; Stack (size_t size); ~Stack (void); void push (const T &item) throw (Overflow); void pop (T &item) throw (Underflow); bool is_empty (void) const; bool is_full (void) const; private: size_t top_, size_; T *stack_; };

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

Stack.cpp
void Stack::push (const T &item) throw (Stack::Overflow) { if (is_full ()) throw Stack::Overflow (); stack_[top_++] = item; } void Stack::pop (T &item) throw (Stack::Underflow) { if (is_empty ()) throw Stack::Underflow (); item = stack_[--top_]; } Stack::~Stack () { delete [] stack_; }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

Stack.cpp
Stack::Stack (const Stack &s): : top_ (s.top_), size_ (s.size_), stack_ (0) { scoped_array<T> temp_stack (new T[s.size_]); for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) temp_stack[i] = s.stack_[i]; temp_stack.swap (stack_); } void Stack::operator = (const Stack &s) { if (this == &s) return; // Check for self-assignment scoped_array<T> temp_stack (new T[s.size_]); for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) temp_stack[i] = s.stack_[i]; top_ = s.top_; size_ = s.size_; temp_stack.swap (stack_); }

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

scoped_array extends auto_ptr to destroy built-in arrays
template <typename T> class scoped_array { public: explicit scoped_array (T *p = 0) : ptr_ (p) {} ~scoped_array () { delete [] ptr_; } T &operator[](std::ptrdiff_t i) const { return ptr_[i]; } T *get() const { return ptr_; } void swap (T *&b) { T *tmp = b; b = ptr_; ptr_ = tmp; } void swap (scoped_array<T> &b) { T *tmp = b.ptr_; b.ptr_ = this->ptr_; this->ptr_ = tmp; } private: T *ptr_; scoped_array (const scoped_array<T> &); scoped_array &operator=(const scoped_array<T> &); };

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

Theres a better way to implement operator=():
void Stack::operator = (const Stack &s) { if (this == &s) return; // Check for self-assignment Stack t (s); std::swap (t.top_, top_); std::swap (t.size_, size_); std::swap (t.stack_, stack_); } // Old way: void Stack::operator = (const Stack &s) { if (this == &s) return; // Check for self-assignment scoped_array<T> temp_stack (new T[s.size_]); for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) temp_stack[i] = s.stack_[i]; top_ = s.top_; size_ = s.size_; temp_stack.swap (stack_); }

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

And yet an even better way to implement exception-safe Stack):
class Stack { // ... private: // ... scoped_array<T> stack_; void swap (Stack &); }; // ... Stack::Stack (const Stack &s): : top_ (s.top_), size_ (s.size_), stack_ (new T[s.size_]) { for (size_t i = 0; i < s.size_; ++i) stack_[i] = s.stack_[i]; } Stack::~Stack () { /* no-op! */ }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

And yet an even better way to implement operator=():
void Stack::operator = (const Stack &s) { if (this == &s) return; // Check for self-assignment Stack temp_stack (s); swap (temp_stack); } void Stack::swap (Stack &t) { std::swap (t.top_, top_); std::swap (t.size_, size_); t.swap (stack_); }

Use case

Exception Handling Implementation in C++ (contd)

#include "Stack.h" void foo (void) { Stack s1 (1), s2 (100); try { T item; s1.push (473); s1.push (42); // Exception, pushd full stack! s2.pop (item); // Exception, popd empty stack! s2.top_ = 10; // Access violation caught! } catch (Stack::Underflow) { /* Handle underflow... */ } catch (Stack::Overflow) { /* Handle overflow... */ } catch (...) { /* Catch anything else... */ throw; } } // Termination is handled automatically. }

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Template Implementation in C++ A parameterized type Stack class interface using C++
template <typename T> class Stack { public: Stack (size_t size); ~Stack (void) void push (const T &item); void pop (T &item); bool is_empty (void) const; bool is_full (void) const; private: size_t top_, size_; T *stack_; };

Template Implementation in C++ (contd)

A parameterized type Stack class implementation using C++
template <typename T> inline Stack<T>::Stack (size_t size) : top_ (0), size_ (size), stack_ (new T[size]) { } template <typename T> inline Stack<T>::~Stack (void) { delete [] stack_; } template <typename T> inline void Stack<T>::push (const T &item) { stack_[top_++] = item; } template <typename T> inline void Stack<T>::pop (T &item) { item = stack_[--top_]; }

To simplify the following examples well omit exception handling, but note that its important to ensure exception-safety guarantees!
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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Template Implementation in C++ (contd)

Note minor changes to accommodate parameterized types
#include "Stack.h" void foo (void) { Stack<int> s1 (1000); Stack<float> s2; Stack< Stack <Activation_Record> *> s3; s1.push (-291); s2.top_ = 3.1416; // Access violation caught! s3.push (new Stack<Activation_Record>); Stack <Activation_Record> *sar; s3.pop (sar); delete sar; // Termination of s1, s2, & s3 handled automatically }

Template Implementation in C++ (contd)

Another parameterized type Stack class
template <typename T, size_t SIZE> class Stack { public: Stack (void); ~Stack (void) void push (const T &item); void pop (T &item); private: size_t top_, size_; T stack_[SIZE]; };

No need for dynamic memory, though SIZE must be const, e.g.,

Stack<int, 200> s1;

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++

Problems with previous examples: Changes to the implementation will require recompilation & relinking of clients Extensions will require access to the source code Solutions Combine inheritance with dynamic binding to completely decouple interface from implementation & binding time This requires the use of C++ abstract base classes

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

Dening an abstract base class in C++
template <typename T> class Stack { public: virtual ~Stack (void) = 0; // Need implementation! virtual void push (const T &item) = 0; virtual void pop (T &item) = 0; virtual bool is_empty (void) const = 0; virtual bool is_full (void) const = 0; void top (T &item) { // Template Method pop (item); push (item); } };

By using pure virtual methods, we can guarantee that the compiler wont allow instantiation!

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

Inherit to create a specialized stack implemented via an STL vector:
#include "Stack.h" #include <vector> template <typename T> class V_Stack : public Stack<T> { public: enum { DEFAULT_SIZE = 100 }; V_Stack (size_t size = DEFAULT_SIZE); V_Stack (const V_Stack &rhs); void operator= (const V_Stack &rhs); virtual void push (const T &item); virtual void pop (T &item); virtual bool is_empty (void) const; virtual bool is_full (void) const; private: size_t top_; // built-in std::vector<T> stack_; // user-defined };

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

class V Stack implementation
template <typename T> V_Stack<T>::V_Stack (size_t size): top_ (0), stack_ (size) {} template <typename T> V_Stack<T>::V_Stack (const V_Stack &rhs): top_ (rhs.top_), stack_ (rhs.stack_) {} template <typename T> V_Stack<T>::operator= (const V_Stack &rhs) { if (this == &rhs) return; top_ = rhs.top_; stack_ = rhs.stack_; } template <typename T> void V_Stack<T>::push (const T &item) { stack_[top_++] = item; } template <typename T> void V_Stack<T>::pop (T &item) { item = stack_[--top_]; } template <typename T> int V_Stack<T>::is_full (void) const { return top_ >= stack_.size (); } 38 Vanderbilt University 39

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

Inheritance can also create an linked list stack:
template <typename T> class Node; // forward declaration. template <typename T> class L_Stack : public Stack<T> { public: enum { DEFAULT_SIZE = 100 }; L_Stack (size_t hint = DEFAULT_SIZE); ~L_Stack (void); virtual void push (const T &new_item); virtual void pop (T &top_item); virtual bool is_empty (void) const { return head_ == 0; } virtual bool is_full (void) const { return 0; } private: // Head of linked list of Node<T>s. Node<T> *head_; };

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

class Node implementation
template <typename T> class Node { friend template <typename T> class L_Stack; public: Node (T i, Node<T> *n = 0): item_ (i), next_ (n) {} private: T item_; Node<T> *next_; };

Note that the use of the Cheshire cat idiom allows the library writer to completely hide the representation of class V Stack...

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

class L Stack implementation:
template <typename T> L_Stack<T>::L_Stack (size_t): head_ (0) {} template <typename T> void L_Stack<T>::push (const T &item) { Node<T> *t = new Node<T> (item, head_); head_ = t; } template <typename T> void L_Stack<T>::pop (T &top_item) { top_item = head_->item_; Node<T> *t = head_; head_ = head_->next_; delete t; } template <typename T> L_Stack<T>::~L_Stack (void) { for (T t; head_ != 0; pop (t)) continue; }

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

Using our abstract base class, it is possible to write code that does not depend on the stack implementation, e.g.,
template <typename T> Stack<T> *make_stack (bool use_V_Stack) { return use_V_Stack ? new V_Stack<T> : new L_Stack<T>; } template <typename T> void foo (Stack<T> *stack, const T &t) { T s; stack->push (t); stack->pop (s); // ... } foo<int> (make_stack<int> (true), 10);

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An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

An Overview of C++

Douglas C. Schmidt

Object-Oriented Implementation in C++ (contd)

Moreover, we can make changes at run-time without modifying, recompiling, or relinking existing code i.e., can use dynamic linking to select stack representation at run-time, e.g.,
char stack_symbol[MAXNAMLEN]; char stack_file[MAXNAMLEN]; cin >> stack_file >> stack_symbol; void *handle = ACE_OS::dlopen (stack_file); void *sym = ACE_OS::dlsym (handle, stack_symbol); if (Stack<int> *sp = // Note use of RTTI dynamic_cast <Stack<int> *> (sym)) foo (sp);

Summary
A major contribution of C++ is its support for dening abstract data types (ADTs) & for generic programming e.g., classes, parameterized types, & exception handling For some systems, C++s ADT support is more important than using the OO features of the language For other systems, the use of C++s OO features is essential to build highly exible & extensible software e.g., inheritance, dynamic binding, & RTTI

Note, no need to stop, modify, & restart an executing application! Naturally, this requires careful conguration management...
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